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By Abiodun Adewale
Nigeria women’s cricket team, the Female Yellow Greens, have moved up again in the latest International Cricket Council T20i rankings, displacing arch rivals Rwanda and moved from 27th to 26th in the world and now seventh in Africa, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
It’s the second time the Female Yellow Greens have moved up in March, having jumped two places from 29th to 27th two weeks ago.
They are now a place behind Kenya, who sit 25th in the world and sixth in Africa.
Their rise is not unconnected to their performance at the cricket event of the 2023 African Games, where they defied the odds to win bronze despite being the least-ranked team going into the tournament.
At the tournament, they upset Namibia by 55 runs in the group stages, which boosted their chances of progressing to the semi-finals, before they beat Uganda by three wickets to win the bronze medal.
Their African Games performance was off the back of a second-place finish at the fifth Nigeria Cricket Federation Women’s T20i invitational tournament in Lagos.
At the two tournaments, they won six out of 11 T20i games, losing four and drawing one.
One of the tournaments still ahead of the team this year is the Kwibuka in Rwanda, where they will be seeking a first title.
Meanwhile, South Africa are still fifth in the world and number one in Africa just as Australia kept their top place in the world rankings.